The University of Toronto, the city and province could be at the centre of a new economic wave that will dwarf the tech revolution, a panel of experts told a gathering at U of T’s School of the Environment.

On October 12, experts from around the world gathered at U of T for a cross-disciplinary look at one of the biggest challenges humanity faces. They’re finding hope where many of us might not think to look: greenhouse gases.

A team of scientists from the University of Toronto believes they’ve found a way to convert CO₂ emissions into energy-rich fuel in a carbon-neutral cycle that uses a very abundant natural resource: silicon — the seventh most-abundant element in the universe and the second most-abundant element in the earth’s crust.

More than 200 faculty members on all three U of T campuses in a variety of disciplines are researching topics in energy and the environment, including climate change – many in collaboration with leading national and international organizations.

PhD candidate Pamela Wong is combining leading-edge scientific techniques with traditional Inuit knowledge to better our understanding of the impact of climate change on polar bear populations. She can also tell you what to do if a hungry polar bear knocks on your door in the middle of the night.

University Professor Geoffry Ozin is leading a multidisciplinary team to recast the infamous greenhouse-gas scoundrel in the role of hero, placing it centre stage in the development of carbon-neutral, energy-rich renewable fuel.

As the world reacts to Pope Francis’ encyclical on the environment released last Thursday, Stephen Scharper gives more insight into what it means and why it is being described by some as a lecture for the ages.

The Tar Sands in Alberta, potential development in the Ring of Fire in northern Ontario, declining timber harvest and farming — human activity is transforming Canada’s landscape, yet many of the country’s aquatic resources remain unprotected, according to research by ecologists at the University of Toronto.

It’s summer, but in the Arctic that translates to temperatures around 0 degrees Celsius, rather than sunbathing weather. Nonetheless, you’ll hear no complaints from chemists Jonathan Abbatt and Jennifer Murphy, and their graduate students, who spent a slice of July and August surrounded by sea ice as they studied the chemical processes involved in atmospheric change at the molecular level.

This week, President Barack Obama unveiled significant new regulations to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions in the United States – to cut emissions from coal plants by 30 per cent for 2030. The US then called on Canada to take similar action, including on Canada’s fastest-growing source of emissions, oil production.

“We’re thrilled to share the great success of SCISAT and remember that day when the satellite took its first measurements and reported back,” said U of T physicist Kaley Walker, deputy mission scientist of ACE. “This has been a great experiment to work on for U of T.”

To reach Canada’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 17 per cent below the 2005 level by the year 2020, federal and provincial governments, led by the Prime Minister and provincial premiers, must reach agreement on what portion of the total GHG reduction will be provided by each province say researchers from the University of Toronto’s School of the Environment.